Thakgalo Monawa - If you/I knew

South Africa

Starting with a simple string of guitar chords, gentle tempo, and sweetly deep vocals that blaze with bass and emotive tones, If you/I knew is the joint that'll have you enveloped in introspection, submerged in affection, and taking in the lessons. Thakgalo Monawa delivers it all with a hint of desire and a fire pit of despair. 

If you/I knew sonically dives into a split of feelings, there's an element of longing, nostalgia, and a potential resolution that's met with regret, distance, and resentment. 

The two energies delicately dance around each other throughout the song, and Thakgalo Monawa serves a melodic consistency that creates an intentional barrier within the tune, playing on the theme of wishful thinking and needing change; it's giving a subtle salute to Aaliyah's We Need a Resolution and ends on indecision.

"I broke the song down into two related narratives. In the first verse, you get to know about things I wish the significant other knew while we were in a relationship. In the second verse, I talk about the things I wish I knew while I was in a relationship, followed by how I would’ve wished for the significant other to have felt how I felt. The chorus talks about how I can’t keep going back and forth on a situation that was stagnant and that one of us will have to change in order to move forward." - Thakgalo Monawa

Producer LYKO hit an era rewind on the instrumentals and channelled classic Old School R'n'b, giving If you/I knew the perfect soundscape for this emotional release.

"I’ve always been in love with the 90s R&B style because I grew up listening to those a lot. I always knew how I wanted the song to sound, so I went all over looking for a good producer, and that’s when I found LYKO, who executed that beautifully." - Thakgalo Monawa

2024 is yet to see a new release from Thakgalo Monawa, and only time will tell when the next drop will lift off, so in the meantime, connect with If you/I knew below on the IYCM Spotify rotation.

UNCVRD 2024

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